The Skin Benefits Of Yoga, Plus A Bonus Tip
As yoga is one of our favourite ways to stay active and calm, we caught up with the founder of green lifestyle blog and store Attitude Organic, Marine Leclerc, to get her insights on the topic. On her website, Marine provides tips on being greener in your daily life in a sustainable way, covering food, beauty, fashion, and lifestyle. Below she shares with us why yoga is so good for our skin!
Have you ever stopped to think of the many health benefits of yoga? We wrote about yoga's great impact on your sexual life over on our blog (check it out here) but yoga also helps with achieving a natural skin glow! Here is why:
1. Yoga will make your face glow!
Yoga increases blood circulation which aids cells renewal and in particular renewal of the skin cells. If you have a tired complexion, all of the yoga poses that increase blood circulation to your face are great help! Inverted poses and forward bends are your best friends: go for cobra pose, shoulder stand, child pose, triangle pose, and even a headstand if you can manage one! The various opening poses and breathing exercise increase the oxygen flow towards your skin cells, encouraging their renewal. Also, keep in mind that yoga improves digestion and helps your body to absorb all the good nutrients of food. And it is not a surprise that this is key in achieving that coveted skin glow! Of course there is no need to do those poses with the intention of improving your skin. The benefits come naturally with your daily / weekly practice. You just need to get on your mat, but it would just feel great to be aware of all the benefits of yoga.
2. Yoga reduces breakouts
Let’s be honest, if you attend an intensive class like a hot yoga or a yoga flow class, you sweat! At least I do… So it might not be sexy but it is amazing for your skin. It eliminates the toxins and purifies your skin. Just a few sun salutations do the job! Moreover, some asanas stimulate the glands that produce hormones and they help them to stay balanced. If your acne is related to hormonal issues, yoga could result in big improvements. Powerful types of yoga that will ensure you sweat the most include Ashtanga, Hot Yoga, Power Yoga, and some types of Vinyasa Flow. Just make sure you bring your own mat or put a towel first before touching your face on the floor (you don't want to come in contact with any sweat leftovers from the person before you!).
3. Yoga keeps wrinkles and elasticity under control
Yoga is well-known for reducing stress and this in turn improves your sleep. And of course you have heard of the sleeping beauty and that good sleep is key to look fresh and prevent premature ageing. Here is a quick guide to a type of traditional practice called face yoga, which will help you to limit the appearance of premature wrinkles and keep your skin healthy.
Bonus Tip: For a face lifting exercise, follow these simple steps:
- Place your palms on your temples
- Pull the skin back (gently!)
- Make a big O with your mouth
- Drop your jaw as low as possible
- Hold for 5 seconds
- Repeat 3 times
- Optional: do this in front of the mirror for extra giggles!
4. Skin benefits of yoga in hot rooms
Hot Yoga is the practice of yoga under hot and humid conditions. These classes take place in room where the humidity in the air reaches 40%. This environment is a great way to hydrate the skin. However, you need to be careful. If you want to make the most of it you need to lock the just-gained hydration into your skin by using a moisturiser (you can try the Miss Organics face oils) as soon as you leave the room. If you do not, hot yoga could actually have the opposite effect. You also need to make sure that you clean your face before applying the moisturiser. Indeed, sweat is bacteria prone and can cause breakouts if not washed properly.
Hope this post has inspired you to hop onto your yoga mat more often! As always, to maximise these benefits you need to eat healthy food and use appropriate cosmetics. In my opinion, natural skin care is the best.
To learn more about the author and Attitude Organic, please check their website here.
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